Man dies after falling into the water off Squantum

Friday

Nov 30, 2012 at 12:01 AMNov 30, 2012 at 11:22 PM

Patrick Walsh, 72, of Squantum, died Thursday afternoon after falling into the water off Orchard Beach.

Morgan True

Patrick Walsh, an immigrant from Ireland who, with his wife of 45 years, raised a large and close-knit family in the city’s Squantum neighborhood, was enjoying time on the water Thursday afternoon, just like countless other days for the retired carpenter.

But this day was different. The 72-year-old fell into the water off Orchard Beach in Squantum at about 3 p.m. as he was trying to step from his boat into a dinghy tied to a mooring.

Walsh’s friend, Tim Sheehan, 45, with whom he had been checking lobster pots, went into the icy water after him and dragged him to shore. But it was too late. Walsh was pronounced dead at Quincy Medical Center. Sheehan, of North Quincy, was treated for shock and hypothermia, and was released from the hospital Thursday night.

“He was a down-to-earth, unassuming, hard-working family man who raised a highly regarded family,” Norfolk County Sheriff Michael Bellotti, a neighbor of Walsh’s in Squantum, said Friday. “It is a shocking and devastating loss to the Squantum community.”

Patrick Walsh and his wife Claire, who died in 2008, raised five children in Squantum, all of whom still live in the neighborhood. He lived a few streets away from where the accident happened Thursday afternoon.

Quincy’s Ward 6 city councilor, Brain McNamee, said in a phone interview that the news came as a shock when he heard it Thursday afternoon. Walsh was strong and in good condition, he said.

“He was a very central figure in his family,” he said. “The Walsh family is a popular and prominent family in Squantum, very active in the community. His passing is a tremendous loss.”

Police received a call reporting a person in the water at 3:09 p.m., about two hours before low tide in the shallow inlet.

Rescuers performed CPR on Walsh before he and Sheehan were taken to Quincy Medical Center.

A police car and an ambulance got stuck in the loose sand at the scene and had to be towed.

The state Environmental Police, the agency with jurisdiction over incidents that occur on the water, is investigating.